Runway closed to general aviators in Pennsylvania
July 28, 2011, 03:50 pm
The Horsham Land Reuse Authority recently rejected two applications to keep an 8,000-foot runway at the Willow Grove Naval Air Station open to general aviators. The applications were voted on separately, and both decisions received a large degree of approval from the gathered town crowd in the Horsham Township Community Center in Pennsylvania.
Not everyone was pleased by the decision, however. Authority board member Steve Nelson publically questioned RKG Associates, the land's planning consultant, why it had not looked into more options for keeping the runway open. Other board members, including William Whiteside and Joanna Furia, defended the board's vote and argued that Nelson was out of place by inferring that the board had rushed its vote and not done its due diligence concerning the runway.
The nearly 900 acres affected by the decision will likely be divided among a variety of institutions. The board approved using some of the land for a new school, administrative buildings and athletic fields, as well as a fire station and parking lot.
According to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, there were approximately 5,178 public-use and 14,120 private-use landing facilities in 2009 in the United States. Life insurance for pilots is important for both commercial and private aviators.
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